After that fun day with everybody, it was time to go back to the routine of the Pokémon School. At least, that’s what Selene thought. However, not only the School offered a huge variety of activities and tasks for the children to enjoy, but they all spent their afternoons together in some way or another. For Selene, who had only scratched the surface of everything Alola had to offer, everyday felt like a whole new adventure. And she especially enjoyed those adventures thanks to their new friends. After a couple of weeks, the girl had gotten used to that new life, and even though everybody was still worried about Selene’s origins and Officer Jenny kept working to find some clues, she wasn’t as worried about that as she initially was. In her heart, Selene eagerly awaited every new day with her friends.

One afternoon, Selene went back home after hanging out with her friends as usual. Rockruff quickly greeted her, jumping on her and rubbing its neck against her. The girl had learned to enjoy the strange mix of tickles and scratches from the Pokémon. After putting Rockruff down on the floor, she tried to greet Professor Kukui, who was in the kitched, but found it impossible as he was talking to the phone. The professor turned around and rose his hand to greet the girl, but he kept talking.

“Yeah, I have seen your videos”, said Kukui to the other person. “It really is curious, ya know? I mean, I read about this with other species, but not with this one. This Saturday? Aaaaah, dunno. Now I have someone here. Can’t leave her alone the whole weekend. Look, let me think ‘bout it and call you later, got it?”.

The professor hung up and sighed while scratching his head. Then, he walked towards Selene, who had sat down in front of the kitchen isle.

“Hi, Selene. Sorry, it was an important call”, apologized Kukui.

“Don’t worry, Professor. Who was it?”, asked Selene with curiosity.

“Oh, that was Hapu, the Kahuna of Poni Island. Ya remember what Kahunas are, right?”, asked Kukui with a snarky smile.

Selene hummed for a moment, trying to remember the lessons from the school.

“They are like the… mayors of each isle? Like they lead and help people”, answered Selene hesitantly.

“Not exactly, but quite close. Kahunas take care of people and Pokémon. They solve every problem in their respective isles. They are quite respected. We are usually in contact in case something happens”, explained Kukui.

“Wow, they sound important”, said Selene in awe. “And what did Hapu want?”

“She’s been telling me about this interesting wild Pokémon in her island. I’d like to take a closer look to confirm it and she just invited me. But dunno…”, said Kukui hesitantly.

Observing the professor, it was obvious for Selene that he wanted to go there. Why was he doubting so much? It was then that she remembered the conversation just a few minutes ago, especially the “can’t leave her alone” part. While she didn’t pay that much attention at first, she then realized he was talking about her.

“Wait, you won’t go there because of me?”, asked Selene.

“Duh, ‘course!”, answered Kukui. “I mean, Poni Island is quite far. If I leave early on Saturday, I may not be back until Sunday night. What’cha gonna do the whole weekend alone? What if something happens?”.

“But you gotta go! It’s a great chance to study that Pokémon, right? I’m sure I’ll be fine!”, exclaimed Selene, trying to convince the professor.

Professor Kukui found himself between a Graveler and a hard place. He really wanted to go, but he also worried about Selene’s well-being. However, he knew the girl wouldn’t cause any trouble. Knowing that, he tried to come up with solutions, but it was hard.

“I guess I could tell Officer Jenny or maybe Principal Oak, but I don’t want to trouble ‘em. Dunno what to do…”, muttered Kukui.

On her part, Selene tried to come up with options as well. She could call her friends and ask to stay over the weekend. However, she knew Mallow would be busy with her restaurant, she didn’t want to trouble her. Lana would be fine, but she also has a couple of twin sisters, Lana and her mother would have to take care of them as well. About Kiawe, Selene didn’t even know where he lived and, while they got along, she didn’t feel as close to him to ask him something like that. The same thing happened with Sophocles, but also, she was a bit worried about his “scientific projects”. Lillie had a big house for sure, but would her family be fine with having a normal girl in such a fancy place?

It was really hard to think about a possible place to spend the weekend, especially because her mind was busy with other thing: that mysterious Pokémon. After hearing the professor talk about it, she was curious as well and wondered what kind of Pokémon could be that interesting. For a moment, she imagined herself along with Kukui looking at that possible creature. That figment of imagination made her come up with something.

“Wait. Professor, why don’t I go with you?”, suggested Selene.

“What? Dunno, we’ll be going into some rough areas. Poni Island has the most wilderness outta there”, explained Kukui.

“But it would be the best option, right? If I go with you, you can look after me instead of worrying about what may happen here. You can focus better on your research. Also, I’ve never been to other islands. It would be a great chance to see new things and learn more”, countered Selene.

Against those logical arguments, the professor meditated in silence, putting his hand on his chin. It was true that, along with Hapu, it would be easier to protect Selene against possible dangers in the wild than letting someone else take care of her given her situation. Additionally, the area he was visiting wasn’t excessively dangerous. And he knew how cautious Selene was in the wild when walking with Rockruff. The more he thought about it, the harder he found to refuse the idea, so in the end, we gave in with a smile.

“Got it! You convinced me! But listen me well, young lady: you gotta do whatever me and Hapu tell you, understood? And you better keep a Keen Eye on everything ‘round ya!”, answered Kukui.

Full of excitement, Selene nodded and smiled. She was going out in the wild to see new Pokémon! That thought alone was enough to thrill her about that upcoming trip. When she told her friends the next day, they were quite happy and a bit jealous of her, although Lillie made sure to remind Selene about being safe and careful. Still, all of them couldn’t stop thinking about what kind of Pokémon the professor and Selene were going to research. Days passed by quickly with the classes and the preparations for their trip, and the night before, Selene went to bed early, although it took her a while to sleep because of her nervousness.